Family Update

Oh my goodness, how time flies! I surely mean it too as I sit here contemplating the fact that my newest little girl is already six weeks old today! I mean, jeeeeez!

It's so weird how fast things go. Life with kids is very comparable to my mission to the Dominican Republic: every day feels like a year and every year feels like a day. Each day I seriously just fall into bed exhausted, but then I cringe when I think of Evie's FIFTH birthday in a little over a month and the fact that I had to register her for kindergarten next year. Gracious how fast they grow up and ... I get old! I still feel like I am 16, but I'm so glad I'm not. Teen years are definitely the kind of thing you only do once and, if I'd had my way, skipped all together.

Anyway, happy sixth week to Alexandra! Yay! Here are some fun thoughts, updates, and of course, pictures of our most wonderful little ones!

Evelynn: such a cutie! She's learning so much in preschool and though she's registered for local public kindergarten, we're still leaning toward homeschooling. It's one of those things that's easier to get out of than to get into, so I got her set up for next year. She can recognize letters now in her books and even spoken words catch her attention. We work on her writing of the alphabet several times a week. She's soooooo smart! She loves her brother and sisters and can't wait for another. I told her she has to be patient for a bit and just enjoy the ones she has now. She hates that idea!

Waiting for the doctor

Silly Evie moments: we were taking a van-load of stuff to our local recycling center and there was so much Evie's feet had no where to go. She looked at me in the rear view mirror and yelled happily, "it's like a slumber party with garbage!" followed by her characteristic giggle. Had me laughing for days!

Joseph: holy cow, my little boy is getting so big! He's working on his ABC's now with our flash cards and totally loving doing school with Evie at our kitchen table. We have been blessed with lots of resources thanks to Gramas and bookstores and daddy's supreme support for homeschooling so we have lots to do every day! Joseph has officially given up his pacifier. He did such a great job. The first night would've been tricky except daddy gave him a super cool glow stick as a treat for going without. Now he never needs it. It's awesome. It also looks like potty training will start ASAP. After getting my feet showered while brushing the kids teeth (and not from water), I decided I was ready to commit to the task. After that, my little boy will officially no longer be a little boy, he'll be my big boy. It's a love/hate moment.

"Cartoons from the Laundry" by JC

Funny little Joseph-isms: At nap time I fill JC's sippy with water, but one day I couldn't find it. I asked JC where it went and he looked at me and seriously said, "I ate it." I asked, "you ate it?" (you know, he's two and still learning to talk. I thought I'd mis-heard him) He looked at me and said, "yes, in tummy," and he pointed to his tubby little belly. "You ate it and it's in your tummy?" "yep, all gone" and he opened his mouth to show me there was nothing there. My mommy brain kicked in at that point, "so do you want another one or are you full?" "Full." and he laid down for his nap. I giggled all the way out of the room.

FHE on priesthood blessings

Elizabeth: goodness, she's adorable. She has the most beautiful blue eyes of the whole family and the craziest hair. I can't seem to get it out of her face for more than a few minutes, even with all the hair stuff I have. Chris calls her Feral, which I hate, but it does fit. She reminds me of a dog I had as a kid that my dad insisted couldn't see and would often chop the front of her hair. Chris threatens regularly to do the same to my little girl, so I keep a lot of clips around and make sure her hair is up when daddy's home. I also held onto her the whole time we went to the hair salon this last weekend. No one was going to touch her. I'm just not ready for her first haircut. I was, however, ready for her first visit to the dentist. She did a decent job for a kid who hates having her face touched...AT ALL! They looked and deliberated and decided she looked just fine for the time being. I was happy.

Lizzy accomplishments: she can now throw a ball and not fall down!!! I also finally got her on video walking! She took her first steps in January, but then never walked again. Drove us all nuts. Then just before Ally came she began walking more and more. At first it was from the couch to the couch, then from the couch to a parent and now she walks more than she crawls. It's so cute. She's even starting to be able to pivot without falling over. It's so fun to see little ones grow. She's also finally gotten some more teeth. Her upper jaw is almost full and she even has a few new ones on the bottom. She still eats more than her siblings, but now I'm fairly sure she won't be choking if I leave for a second.

Alexandra: so what do I say about my newest little girl? She is fantastic. If Lizzy is high maintenance than Ally is my go-with-the-flow child. Thank goodness. She sleeps really well and almost all night now. She eats very well, but doesn't freak out if her bottle is right on schedule. She's quiet and happy and very patient with her brother and sisters poking and prodding and picking her up (not a good thing that Evie does!). She's such a blessing for me specifically. I love to cuddle her and she is so good at being cuddled!

I'm not sleepy, mom!

Ally's development: she is officially a big baby. We've already changed the car seat head support to the bigger one and she's sleeping and eating so well and regular that we will be moving her into her room/crib at the end of this week. Amazing. I will have both my body and my room back within two months!!! Awesome gift for mommy, thanks Ally!

After a warm bath

Dad: is doing just fine. Loves his job, loves his new TV (thanks tax return), loves his kids, and thankfully, loves his wife. What more could a man want! He's an awesome dad, helps out when he can and makes sure his wife gets date night every week. We recently began actually planning our date nights a week in advance and wow are they fun. We've made desserts together, gone on walks around the block (no kids), worked on some projects, watched movies, and really just enjoyed being just the two of us. What a guy.

Making a St. Patrick's Day dessert

Mom: anxious to get back to exercising! I started my Yoga this week and will begin my Zumba within the next two weeks. I doubt I'll be in the gym anytime soon since none of the gym play centers take infants under 6mos, but I'll keep my eye on that one. I'm feeling great since Ally is bottle fed and sleeping at least six hours a night. I even get a bit of time to myself with my husband being the wonderful guy he is. I've read some new books, got released from two of my four callings, whew!, and made some new friends. Chris is great at that, being the Elder's Quorum Pres and all - he's always trying to fellowship and that brings new women into my social circle. Thank goodness. I have a hard time at the beginning of friendships, but I'm great at the rest!

As a family, we are happily adjusting, if not adjusted already, to our growing family. We've finally gotten a dining table (cheap and with a monetary gift from my late grampa) that fits us all and hopefully, will fit for the future little one(s) still to come. We have helped our oldest two learn to share space in their bedrooms, which probably won't change for quite a while. And we've readjusted our time and energies to get only the important things done, begin paying of huge amounts of debt, and somehow still get to play a little and save a little. We can't be responsible all the time, can we?

Playing with daddy!

Well, that is the Fosburg home. We are healthy, happy, and working hard to do good things. Loves and we'll see you again soon!